Coming out is a very hard thing to do, we are constantly weighed down by old views on marriage and relationships. There are even still parts of society that condemn the gay community and who like to publicly display their viewpoints on this. It becomes an even harder issue when a huge part of society is looking at your every move, waiting to criticize and put you in the tabloids. Picking apart every essence of your being, every word you say and every decision you make. Here is a list of five celebrity lesbians who dated men.

Wanda Sykes

When I think of Wanda Sykes I first remember seeing her on the show The New Adventures of Old Christine as the character Barbara Baran. She was sassy, blunt and very relatable. She always made me laugh. One of my favorite line she said on that show is “You’ve got to get out there. There’s a group of ladies in the bathroom who are about to riot. Everyone who works out on Wednesday is on the same cycle, and you’re out of Maxi Pads. It’s like a CSI crime scene in there” I imagine her to be much like this when she is not playing the role as Barbara as well. My friend Sarah here at Girlfriends Meet actually made a post on her before that you can check out. Before meeting her wife, Wanda was married to Dave Hall from 1991-1998 in 2008 she married her wife Alex Sykes.

Portia de Rossi

I remember seeing photos of Portia and I will forever think she’s stunning. However, my favorite is her role on the show Arrested Development. I don’t even think I will ever fully understand that show. She plays a high maintenance, airy mother who pays very little attention to her daughter Maeby. She is also an ex-model who has spoken out about her struggle with an eating disorder. Portia was married to Mel Metcalfe from 1996-1999. In 2008 she got married to her wife Ellen DeGeneres.

Frida Kahlo

Frida Kahlo is an icon that most people will be able to recognize however she is a bit unconventional for a celebrity article. Frida Kahlo is an artist who was always pushing the women’s rights movement forward. She is best known for her self portraits, they are full of bright color and show a lot of the roots of her Mexican culture. The Louvre even purchased a painting from her. A painting called The Frame and yes, you read that right. The Louvre, as in Paris, France as in Mona Lisa’s home. She is also well known for marrying another prominent Mexican artist, Diego Rivera. Kahlo and Rivera had a troubling relationship, she often cheated on him with other woman and she was very open about her sexuality.

Ellen Page

You remember Juno, right ? The cute, progressive indie movie about the pregnant teenager, starring Ellen Page. Ellen Page is one of my favorites actresses and person. She stands up for a variety of issues she believes in and is always working to make progress in the world for them (cruelty to animals, equal rights and political issues on dictatorship.) You have most likely have heard the news that on Valentine’s Day of this year (2014) Ellen Page made an inspiring speech at the Human Rights Campaign on equal rights, especially pertaining to the LGBT community (and I cried). In her speech she also came out as being lesbian. Prior to this she dated Alexander Skarsgard and it is now rumored that she has a new girlfriend that she has been seen out and about with.

Alice Walker

I remember when I was young reading a book called Shug by Jenny Han and in the book there was a reference made to Shug Avery and a book called The Color Purple by Alice Walker.  As a young, avid reader I immediately had to read The Color Purple. The content was definitely mature for my age but I read it over and over again even today. If you have read it or even watched the movie you’d know how inspiring this book is and how much of a stance it makes with bringing up issues that are often swept under the rug. If you haven’t read or watched it then do that immediately.  Alice Walker was married to Melvyn Rosenman Leventhal from 1967-1976. When they divorced she was briefly with singer Tracy Chapman.